


Something About Interdimensional Royalty

by Ieznos



Category: Marvel (Comics), Young Avengers (Comics)
Genre: Family Feels, Incredibly Minor Character Death at the very beginning, Multi, Slightly different powers AU, Twin bonding
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-26
Updated: 2017-07-31
Packaged: 2018-09-27 03:48:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,379
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9955586
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ieznos/pseuds/Ieznos
Summary: a.k.a. The Twitches AU that no one asked forThe Darkness raged across the land of Genosha, overpowering the forces of magic that resided there. The twin boys of the sun and the moon were born in the middle of the war, along with a new hope for the country. Hidden on Earth for their own safety, the twins grew up with no knowledge of their true home or of each other.The prophecy says that only the twin brothers can restore Genosha’s light, but can the two boys really defeat such a powerful enemy, especially if they’ve never met?[Tags subject to change as I update]





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Beta'd by @SapphiraBlue bc they're the best 
> 
> I'm uploading the prologue and chapter one at the same time because I wanted to give people something to really read for the first post!
> 
> YES, this is based off of the 2005 Disney Channel Original Movie titled Twitches but I hope to implement enough things that it comes out somewhat different ;3c

 

King Vision ran through the corridors of the castle, clutching twin bundles close to his chest. His wife, Wanda, had given birth just hours before to two beautiful boys, Thomas and William. They had barely been in this world, yet the twins were already in grave danger. With Wanda unable to fight, the Darkness had seized the opportunity to invade the castle. It was after the children, and Vision knew it.

 

Wanda's siblings were with her now, they had travelled far to be with their sister during her hour of need and Vision was confident they would be able to protect her until she had fully recovered. That left Vision alone to keep the children safe, to hide them where the Darkness couldn't see. It was times like these that made him wish that Erik were still around. Wanda’s father, the previous king, had been killed by the Darkness several years ago, starting the dreadful war in the first place.

 

As smoky tendrils began to seep through cracks in the walls, Vision reached his destination. A large room at the end of the corridor, with an engraving carved into the stone floor of a sun and a moon. Crouching down, Vision gently placed his two children on the floor and gave them both a kiss on the head before pulling two amulets out of his pocket.

 

For William, he used his powers to shape the pendant into a fiery sun, a red ruby occupying the center, and tucked it into his son's blanket. The same was done for little Thomas, but the pendant was shaped into a crescent instead, flecks of blue glittering in the surface. Summoning his energy, the King transferred the rest of the power he had into his sons, the boys crying out at the sudden bright light.

 

"You must forgive me, but the light is good for you." Vision apologized, hoping to soothe the newborns. A loud ** _CRACK_** signaled the entrance of the Darkness. The King knew his time was up. In one fell swoop, the Darkness encased Vision, swallowing him into the depths of the black haze, never to reemerge.

 

As the Darkness reached for the children, a bright light pushed it back. The power stored in both of the amulets was keeping the Darkness at bay, unable to touch the two babies for the time being without being gravely hurt. Disgruntled and injured, the black cloud was forced to retreat, leaving enough room for two new figures to hurriedly enter the room.

 

"Quick, you take William, I'll take Thomas. They're safer apart." The man said, scooping up the white-haired child. His counterpart, a girl, took William and began to make her way across the room. The two servants were young, but it was obvious they already had experience beyond their years.

 

"Wait, which dimension are we meeting in, Jonas?" The girl asked, already lifting her leg in preparation to kick open a portal.

 

"I don't know, _America_ , take a guess," The boy, Jonas, snapped back. He moved to the other side of the room, using his own powers to transform the doorway into a portal for himself. He slipped through, leaving no trace of himself or Thomas left behind.

 

America rolled her eyes and smashed open a star shaped hole in the air with a mighty kick, exiting through it before the Darkness had a chance to recover enough to come after them. On the other side, she emerged in an abandoned alleyway in New York City. The baby in her arms began to whine, and she adjusted her hold on the boy before moving towards the hospital in the distance. She knew what had to be done.

 

A similar situation occurred with Jonas and Thomas, with the two of them coming out in New Jersey instead. When Jonas emerged from the shadows he was shocked to see the humans around him dressed in such different outfits. A nearby sign in a store window proclaimed 'Happy Halloween!' as kids ran around and screamed in delight.

 

 _Humans are so strange_ , he thought, carrying baby Thomas down the road, _but I suppose we'll learn all about it soon enough._

 

With a smaller hospital shining brightly in the distance, Jonas picked up the pace. With the twins disguised as humans in this world, they would be safe. The Darkness couldn't stay here for long, and without a trail the twins would be untraceable. Genosha would survive; it had to.

 

Just until the boys were ready.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Follow me at crownedprincestark.tumblr.com for more updates


	2. The Best/Worst Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After 18 years, what are the twins up to?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Still beta'd by @SapphiraBlue
> 
> Time to start this dang story let's go I wrote almost 3k for this

William Kaplan sat at his desk as the sun rose higher and higher in the sky. He'd woken up at the crack of dawn, and was struck with the urge to draw a picture he'd seen in his dreams. After getting dressed and ready for the day, he pulled out his art supplies and started on a new drawing. He lightly traced his pencil around the cheekbones of the boy he'd drawn, wondering what would happen today. Ever since he'd woken, the teen couldn't shake the feeling that something life-changing was going to happen.

 

Behind him, two figures silently opened the door and began to creep closer to their target. With his back to the door, there was no way the boy could see them coming, and yet...

 

"Surprise!" He shouted, spinning around in his seat to face his friends just before they could grab him. Kate and Teddy both groaned in disappointment.

 

"Billy, that's not fair! How do you even do that?" Kate complained, holding out a plate of pancakes she'd brought with her. They were still warm, with cut strawberries lining the sides and 'Happy Birthday!' drizzled on top in chocolate syrup. "We made your parents let us over extra early and everything! Most kids would still be asleep!"

 

Billy just laughed and accepted a crushing hug from his boyfriend before accepting Kate's offering. "You know me, if the sun's up, I'm up," he said, gesturing to the sun shaped pendant on his neck. The red stone in the center glittered in the light, for added effect.

 

"You're turning eighteen! This was your last chance to sleep in before adulthood!" Teddy chimed in, moving behind Billy to pick up the drawing he had been working on. "You got up early to do a self-portrait?"

 

Billy shook his head, shoveling a large piece of pancake into his mouth and trying to gesture something while his mouth was full.

 

"Chew and swallow, Billiam, you can do it," Kate teased, looking over her friend's shoulder to look at the drawing Teddy was holding up. The boy in the picture was sleeping on his back on a couch, limbs splayed out as much as they could in the limited space, and blankets thrown haphazardly around him. He bore a striking resemblance to Billy, but his hair hadn't been shaded in like his surroundings, and remained as white as the page. The shape of a crescent moon was etched lightly on his chest, like it had been decided against and erased at some point.

 

"That's not me," Billy finally gasped out as he swallowed his mouthful of food. "Looks like me, but doesn't feel like me, you know?"

 

Teddy shrugged and set the drawing back on the table. "Some of your weird feelings are things I don't think I'll ever really understand."

Billy stuck his tongue out at his boyfriend before going back to eating the remains of his breakfast.

 

Meanwhile, Kate pulled her phone out of her back pocket and began tapping away. "You ready for your big birthday bash tonight?" she asked. Kate had taken the party planner life very seriously, considering this particular event was going to be two celebrations in one. "With all the Halloween costumes you won't even have to worry about looking pretty."

 

"He always looks pretty," Teddy countered. Billy lightly kicked him in the shin with a grin.

 

"Just don't make it too wild, Kate, I don't think my parents could handle it."

 

Speak of your mother and she shall appear. Rebecca Kaplan chose that moment to pop into her son’s room, just to make sure his friends hadn't dumped the pancakes on Billy to make a mess (which had been tempting). She smiled fondly at the group, glad that her son had such good friends. "Whenever you're done you can get out of the house so we can start setting up."

 

"It's not a surprise party, I don't know why you guys want to do this," Billy groaned, setting the now empty plate on his dresser and moving to his mom for a hug. Getting kicked out of his own house on his birthday kind of sucked, but Billy knew that if he really wanted to, he'd be allowed to come back and hang around inside. It kind of ruined the point if he did though, which his parents always mentioned.

 

"Who cares, less work for you," Kate said, picking up the abandoned plate to bring it back to the kitchen. Honestly, how Billy’s room stayed clean was beyond her.

 

"Hang out with your other friends, have fun, enjoy the weekend!" Rebecca said, herding the group out of the bedroom. There was a lot of work to be done, after all. "And no powers in public!"

 

"I know mom, I promise."

 

"Unless we see a kitten in a tree," Kate teased.

 

"We'll come back to help you after we pawn Billy off on someone else," Teddy promised as he passed her. Billy let out an offended noise from the hallway.

 

"Abandoned by my own boyfriend! On my birthday!"

 

"Well he's coming with us right now so hush. Nowhere far though, I don't want to hike to get back here," Kate began shoving the birthday boy down the stairs, with Teddy following behind. It wasn't even 9 a.m. yet and the day was already off to an eventful start.

 

"We can go to the neighborhood basketball court and I'll let you beat me," Teddy offered, reaching the bottom of the stairs. The two boys began to put on their shoes while Kate disappeared further into the house to put the dirty plate in the kitchen sink.

 

"You don't even know how to play basketball," Billy snorted.

 

"Guess it won't be that hard then, huh?"

 

It didn't take long for Kate to get back, and the group quickly checked to make sure they had everything before heading out. Phones and wallets: check. Hugging parents goodbye: check. Extra happy birthday wishes: check.

 

"Eli didn't answer my messages, so I guess he's still sleeping like a normal person," Kate commented as the group walked out the front door.

 

"More sun for us then!" Billy shot back, stretching his arms behind his head. "This is going to be the best birthday ever, I can already feel it."

 

\--

 

Not so far away, on the other side of town, Thomas Shepherd was still sound asleep on his friends’ couch. He dreamt of an inky blackness, nothing visible in any direction. The feeling of desperation seemed to suffocate him, but no matter which way he ran there was no escape. Just as he was starting to give up, Thomas was rudely awakened by a child landing on his chest.

 

"Boo!" The little girl yelled gleefully as Tommy jolted awake, his lightning reflexes being the only thing stopping him socking the girl right in the jaw. After a few more seconds, his surroundings seemed to register in his head and Tommy relaxed back onto the couch cushions.

 

"Kim! I told you to wake him up, not give him a heart attack!" David scolded his little sister from the other side of the room, where the carpet floors gave way to linoleum and a small kitchen was located. The other man was doing the dishes, but apparently even the clinking of bowls and plates hadn't been enough to wake Tommy out of his slumber.

 

With a half-hearted 'Sorry, bro,' Kim slid off the couch and raced back to the kitchen to grab a bowl off of the counter. David shot his friend an apologetic look as Kim brought the bowl back to Tommy. "I made you breakfast! Happy Birthday!"

 

The bowl seemed to contain a mixture of dry cheerios, Trix yogurt, banana chunks, and a handful of candy corn. How appetizing. A single candle was stuck into the middle of the mess in a sad imitation of a birthday cake. With a little hesitance, Thomas picked up the spoon and began to eat the only thing he'd be getting for breakfast.

 

Thomas had been living with the Alleyne family for the past two months, crashing on the couch in their small apartment until he could find a job and save up enough money to live on his own. He'd lost his last one after his boss found out about his juvie records, and not many people were willing to hire an obvious mutant. It was a hard knock life, but at least his friend David had his back.

 

The apartment wasn't much, a living room with a connected kitchen area, a bathroom, and two bedrooms upstairs (Kim bunked with their mother), but it was better than nothing. Tommy had been residing on the couch in their living room, storing his belongings in a suitcase and on the end table next to his makeshift bed. He'd even taken to storing things under the couch, but getting them back out again was like playing Russian roulette with spiders and dust bunnies.

 

It took about three spoonfuls of birthday cereal for Tommy to decide he wasn't hungry anymore. "You should be a culinary student, Kim, you're such a good chef," he complimented, watching the younger girl glow with pride.

 

"Mom already left for work, she said she didn't want to wake our resident sleeping beauty to say happy birthday, but she'll be back tonight," David had finished the dishes and moved into the living room to be with the other two. "I swear, it's like you're nocturnal."

 

"Sorry, I just started writing last night and when I found a place to stop it was already three in the morning," Tommy defended himself. Sometimes he just had ideas that he had to write down right then, or else he'd forget. His powers were fast, but his mind was faster, and he had the tendency to forget certain details. Most of his stories were centered in a fantasy world, but maybe one day he'd publish them all in a book or something...

 

Yeah, right.

 

"Maybe you're a werewolf," David teased, "Feel any furrier on a full moon?"

 

"Well, my mom always said my hair was white from all the moonlight it was absorbing. If the moon’s up, I’m up," Tommy said with a hollow laugh. He still hadn't gotten over the death of his adoptive mother, who had died about 6 months prior. His parents had gotten divorced when he was still young, with Tommy's father leaving the two of them and never bothering to stay in touch. The mother and son had lived in New Jersey for most of their lives, but moved to New York City after Tommy's mother had gotten a job opportunity that could finally give them the money they needed. Of course, the job fell through and the two were stuck in a much bigger, meaner city than before. That's when Thomas met David, and the two families bonded over their struggles.

 

Where David was all dark skin and intelligent gaze, Thomas was a piece of white bread, pale and bland, but soft to the touch (he took great care of his hair, thank you very much). They weren't very similar at first glance, but opposites attract and all that, or something. They still got on each other’s nerves every once in a while, but at this point they were like family, and sometimes that's just what family does.

 

"Do you miss your mom?" Kim asked, piping up from her spot at the foot of the couch. David gave his little sister a murderous look, but Tommy just didn't have it in himself to be mad today. Maybe he was finally growing numb to thought of his mother. He couldn't decide if that was good or bad.

 

"Yeah, kid. I do." He absently reached up to hold the moon shaped pendant on his neck for comfort, the bumpy front worn down from him fidgeting with it after he’d gotten his powers.

 

An awkward silence seemed to fall over the group, but it was quickly broken by David shooing Kim out of the room to go get dressed and ready for the day. "Got any big birthday plans?" he asked Tommy once the two were alone.

 

"Oh yeah," Tommy answered, zipping out of the room before appearing back in front of David less than a second later, fully clothed and ready to roll. "Job hunting."

 

David let out a sigh "Come on, you don't want to hang out with your friends and have fun on your own birthday?"

 

"Yeah my giant group of friends, count of one."

 

"Two!" Kim corrected, jumping back down the stairs. She'd gotten dressed in record time, but her overalls were on backwards and she was missing a shoe. Maybe Tommy wasn't such a good influence.

 

It took a little bit of fussing before Kim was really ready, and the two boys dropped her off at a neighboring apartment to spend the day playing with a friend instead of sitting around in an empty home. Afterwards, Tommy and David head towards the closest bus stop to head into town. Tommy could've just ran them there, but David was adamant that he didn't want to cause a scene, and a Jack Frost lookalike carrying him through town at light speed qualified as 'a scene'.

 

"I don't know, I just feel like something awful is going to happen today." Tommy explained as the two sat on the bus stop benches.

 

"It's your birthday, dude, nothing bad's going to happen."

 

"I'm just saying it feels like it will."

 

David shrugged, "That's probably just Kim's breakfast talking."

 

\--

 

The fenced-in basketball court was definitely a big plus of Billy's neighborhood. It wasn't anything amazing, a slab of tar and one goal, but there was always some sort of equipment left behind to use and a table with a few chairs crammed into the far corner. Today Kate was occupying one of those chairs; scribbling things into a notebook she had laid out on the table while the two boys hucked an old basketball at each other. Turns out both of them were pretty terrible at basketball, and Kate wasn't allowed to play because her aim was too good to be considered fair. They'd traded in a traditional game for instead just throwing the ball around the court and making the other chase it around.

 

"I'm not saying I want to shave my head or anything like that, just that I want to do something different," Billy was saying, catching the ball as it bounced off the court towards him. "I mean, I'm turning 18 today. Isn't something special supposed to happen?"

 

Kate watched in amusement as Billy threw the ball straight at Teddy's head as hard as he could. No mercy for lovers in the heat of battle. "Is beating up your boyfriend with a basketball not special enough for you?" she asked.

 

"Woah!" Teddy exclaimed, dodging the incoming projectile and watching as it bounced all the way to the fence. "Don't encourage him!"

 

As Teddy trudged over to retrieve the ball, Billy took a break to go sit with Kate. "Tell Eli I said hi," he said, flopping down into the chair across from his friend. Kate shot him a questioning look before her phone began to ring, the caller ID screen displaying Eli's name.

 

She made an exaggerated face of shock, somewhat used to Billy’s strange predictions, before answering the call. "Hey Eli, Billy says hi."

 

As Kate became immersed in her phone conversation, Teddy came to join his two friends at the table.

 

"Are you heading out to pick up Cassie soon?" The blonde boy asked, dropping the basketball in Billy's lap. Cassie was supposed to entertain Billy for the day while everyone else helped set up the not-so-surprise party. She was a couple years younger than the rest of them, but was still a great friend, and Billy was looking forward to their outing today.

 

"Yeah, I guess I should head out soon." Billy picked up his phone to send a message to Cassie, making sure she'd be ready when he got there. Kate's conversation with Eli was winding down, exchanging goodbyes before ending the call. She scribbled a few more things onto her notepad before packing up.

 

"Let's head back to the Kaplan's then so Billy can get his car and we can get this party started!" Kate nudged Teddy before getting out of her seat and walking towards the gate exit. She was a woman on a mission to probably wreck Billy's house and have a valid excuse for it. He hoped she still wasn't angry about the nail-polish incident of two months prior.

 

Teddy groaned. "If you try to make me grow wings just to put up streamers I'm not going to help."

 

“Eli said he’s coming over later, he’s got some work he has to do today but he’s definitely coming to the party,” Kate said, ignoring Teddy’s threat.

 

Billy pulled his boyfriend up and hugged his side, leaning against the taller boy as they made their way back to the sidewalk. "You don't have to help set things up at all, you know. You can always come with me and Cassie."

 

"Nah, I have to make sure the best boyfriend ever gets the best party ever," Teddy said, slinging an arm around Billy to keep him close. Kate pretended to gag over the cuteness.

 

Billy smiled, feeling the faint heat of blush on his cheeks. Today really _was_ going to be the best day ever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Follow me at crownedprincestark.tumblr.com for more updates


	3. A Bumpy Start

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will the twins finally meet again after 18 years? Will Jonas stop being accidentally creepy? Will Cassie get a good deal on a new pair of shoes? Stay tuned...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ha ha yeah I wrote the prologue and first chapter in like a week and then took over a month for this, but HEY new chapter that's still exciting 
> 
> Also, just so it's clearer: Jonas and Vision are basically two separate people in this story, and Jonas stays disguised as a human

"I can ask my boss if we have any spots open," David was saying to Tommy as they boarded a bus. It was going to be about a fifteen-minute ride into town and Tommy was already dreading every second of it. They took a seat near the front, backs to the window, and settled down for the commute.

 

"No offense, but I think we'll kill each other if we have to spend all day together. Sharing a bathroom _and_ a uniform? No thanks."

 

"Then just promise me you aren't going to go crazy and stress over it. You can stay with us for as long as you need to, you're like family."

 

" _Like_ being the operative word."

 

David scoffed, "See? You're already being rude about it, I know the signs."

 

Tommy thunked the back of his head against the window and sighed, "Yeah, whatever, sorry. I'm telling you it feels like something terrible is going to happen today and it's making me freak a little bit."

 

"Yeah, something terrible is going to happen to whatever poor business decides to hire you today."

 

"Don't be rude, and tell your mom I said hi."

 

"What?" A shrill ringing answered David's question, and he quickly answered the call from his mother.

 

Tommy smirked and David whacked him in the stomach, mouthing 'stop that' as he tried to listen to the woman on the other end of the line. Next to them, a man with black hair leaned forward in his seat to speak.

 

"You know, it really is incredible how you've grown. You're so ready now," the man said to Tommy, who turned to look at him like he was insane.

 

"Uh, yeah, thanks," Tommy replied awkwardly, looking back at David who just shrugged and continued to talk to his mother.

 

The man quickly leaned back in his seat like he had realized he made a mistake and sat quietly for the rest of the ride. Tommy kept shooting glances at him though, wondering why he looked familiar. Was he a stalker or something? Was he going to get murdered on his birthday? God, that would suck.

 

As the bus came to a stop at a red light, a car pulled up next to it. Inside, Cassie was trying to convince Billy to buy a new outfit for the party. Apparently it was very important for him to look extra nice tonight for some reason.

 

"You don't have to buy a suit or anything, just a dress shirt or something!" Cassie was saying, trying to fix her hair in the little mirror on the flipped down visor. She hadn't been completely ready when Billy picked her up, but she was doing her best.

 

"Why can't I just dress up like a witch and be weird like everyone else?" Billy complained, driving forward once the light turned green and leaving the bus behind.

 

"First of all you'd be a warlock or a wizard, not a witch. Everyone knows that witches are only girls."

 

"Well there go all my hopes and dreams."

 

Cassie rolled her eyes, "Didn't you say it felt like something amazing was going to happen today? You'll have to look your best for whatever it is!"

 

"Alright, we'll check out some clothing stores," Billy conceded, "but we have to go by the comic shop at some point too."

 

"Of course!"

 

All Thomas saw was the back of a red car when he glanced out the window.

 

\--

 

Billy parked the car in a small lot located behind a strip of shops. The whole block was covered in stores so hopefully this would keep him and Cassie busy for the next few hours.

 

"So no one else is coming to join us?" Cassie asked, bumping into Billy as they walked.

 

"Nope, Teddy and Kate are helping set up the party, which I'm apparently not allowed to see, and Eli is busy until tonight. I’m assuming that’s just an excuse for him to not have to deal with the set up though."

 

"Do you think that's what your weird feeling is about?" she asked, "You'll have an amazing surprise party?"

 

Billy shrugged, "I don't think so, when whatever happens happens it'll be...electric. Definitely more than a surprise party."

 

"So we‘ll keep our eyes open and pay attention to our surroundings, be ready for anything!"

 

In front of them the city bus came to a stop, and a flood of people stepped out. A boy with white hair stopped a few feet away to pull a piece of paper out of his pocket and look it over.

 

"Oh my god!" Cassie gasped, pointing down the sidewalk, "What about there?" She turned Billy's head in the same direction with her free hand and indicated a shop on the corner. It seemed to be a more high-end clothing store for people that felt like they were better than others just for shopping downtown. Most importantly, though, it was advertising a sale.

 

"Good enough for me, let's go."

 

The two friends walked down the sidewalk, passing the white-haired boy without a glance.

 

Just outside the store, a woman decked out in red, white, and blue approached the two friends.

 

"Looks like you're ready," she commented, nodding in Billy's direction.

 

"Ready for what?"

 

The woman just smiled and patted Billy on the shoulder, saying "Good luck!" before walking away.

 

"Do you know her?" Cassie asked.

 

Billy shook his head, a puzzled look on his face. The stranger did have a familiar look though; maybe he'd seen her at a party before? She looked older than him so it couldn’t be from school…

 

His train of thought was derailed as Cassie ushered him into the store before any other strangers could approach them. She pointed him in the general direction of the men's section while she went off to find some new shoes; her old sneakers were getting pretty worn down.

 

Billy couldn't help but feel like he was being watched as he sifted through shirts.

 

\--

 

Jonas followed Tommy off the bus, focusing on keeping his distance. He shouldn't have said anything to the boy earlier, but he just couldn't help himself, it was finally happening! Apparently the boy was out job hunting, but there were other, much more important plans for him today.

 

Jonas dipped into a nearby alley, floating up to the rooftop once he was sure no one was looking. He quickly found Thomas again among the crowds of people on the sidewalks, the white hair made him stand out pretty badly. The teen had some sort of list with him that he was looking at, but he wouldn't need that soon enough.

 

A star shaped hole appeared next to him, and America stepped through to watch with Jonas. "Nice going, you freaked him out on that bus ride," she said, glancing at the man next to her.

 

"I can't help it!" Jonas defended himself, "I've been waiting 18 years for this, and don't sit there and pretend you didn't say anything to his brother."

 

America clicked her tongue and pointed to a small shop a little further down the street, "That's the one William went into, now what's your plan?"

 

"Just watch," Jonas said, waving his hand to send a streak of light flying across to the store's window. It took the shape of a sign with **'HELP WANTED** ' plastered in large black font.

 

As Thomas passed by, he looked at the sign in the window and seemed to hesitate before continuing on his way. Jonas groaned before zapping another sign in front of the boy reading **'PLEASE, WE'RE DESPERATE** '. America snorted next to him.

 

It seemed to do the trick though, as Tommy sighed and doubled back to enter the store. Things were finally falling into place.

 

"Wow, real subtle," America snickered, crossing her arms as they waited.

 

"Well he can be a little dense, you know? He makes it really hard for me sometimes," Jonas whined, rubbing a hand over his face.

 

"How long do you think it'll take?"

 

"Knowing our luck? They'll be in there for 8 hours and never even see each other."

 

\--

 

"Of course you need a job, it looks like you couldn't even afford anything in here," The lady behind the counter sneered, looking Tommy up and down. Maybe he should've worn a nicer outfit while trying to get a job. Her nametag said 'Mary', but all Tommy could read was 'Lucifer'.

 

"Well according to your signs in the window it sounds like you're desperate enough," Tommy shot back.

 

"Have you ever even had a job in retail?"

 

"To be honest with you, no, but I can promise I'm a _very fast_ learner."

 

Mary shook her head, "In a place like this, honesty will be your downfall, sweetie. You'd never be able to make a sale."

 

Tommy sighed dejectedly and turned away. Maybe the horrible feeling he had was because he'd never be able to find a job today and he'd become homeless and starve. After taking a few steps away, he was struck with an idea and quickly zipped the few feet back.

 

"Before I go, I just have to ask you where you got those shoes from," Tommy said, "My sister is having a birthday next week and they are so cute on you, I bet she'd love a pair."

 

Mary flushed slightly and looked down at her feet, "Oh, well I've had these for a couple of years actually and-"

 

Tommy watched as she snapped her jaw shut and glared up at him while he leaned over the counter, "I don't even have a sister," he whispered, “I can lie too.”

 

Mary clicked her teeth together once before straightening up again and pulling a blank nametag out from under the counter.

 

"I'll give you one chance at this, kid. You mess up and you're gone," she handed him the nametag and a pen, watching him scribble his name onto the sticker.

 

"Deal, now what exactly am I doing?" Tommy asked, sticking the tag onto his shirt and feeling very accomplished for once in his life.

 

She pointed to a small doorway in the back of the store that seemed to lead into a hallway, "That's the dressing rooms. You're going to go clean them out and put all of the abandoned clothes back where they belong, and then tell me when you're finished."

 

Tommy nodded and quickly made his way over to the dressing room area. He may not be allowed to use his powers in public, but no one ever said anything about speed walking. The store didn't seem to be too crowded anyway, a woman and her child looking at dresses, a blonde girl trying on shoes, a few teens who looked lost, nothing he couldn't handle if it came down to it.

 

There were only 5 dressing rooms to clean, and Tommy began picking up the clothes left behind in the first one. A couple of shirts and a pair of pants weren’t hard to fold, but finding where they belonged in the store took a few minutes.

 

While Tommy was replacing clothes in the third booth, Billy slipped into an already clean one to try on what he'd found. A red dress shirt and some black pants wouldn't look too fancy, but Billy had to admit he looked good in it. Hopefully Teddy would appreciate his new outfit too. He changed back into his normal clothes and opened the door, stepping out to go ask Cassie for her opinion when he bumped into Tommy who had been standing right outside, causing him to drop the clothes he was holding.

 

"Oh, I'm sorry!" Billy apologized, crouching down to help pick up the fallen items.

 

"No, it's fine, don't worry about it," Tommy replied, picking up whatever Billy missed.

 

As Billy went to hand the clothes back to the other boy, he froze. The two of them locked eyes and suddenly the entire world seemed irrelevant.

 

They had the _same face_.

 

They both reached out with a hand, mirroring each other, but Tommy jerked his hand back before their fingers could touch.

 

"This is...weird," Tommy said, looking worried.

 

"This is _great_!" Billy countered with a grin.

 

Somewhere in a different dimension, a hopeful light began to glow for the first time in years.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Follow me @ crownedprincestark.tumblr.com for more updates or to send me an ask telling me to update


	4. Side Effects May Vary

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The twins finally meet! Wow! What a turn of events!   
> They learn a little bit more about each other, and start an unfortunate chain of events

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi can you believe I'm not dead? It's been like 5 months almost but hey at least I finally updated! Shout out to Psylockethe2nd for giving me the motivation to actually write this chapter wowie wow wow 
> 
> I really do love this story and I'm going to try not to fall off the writing train again so I can provide more frequent updates! I've deviated a LOT from my original outline, but I like where it's going even better now 
> 
> Also, I couldn't decide if I should try and pair Tommy up with someone (likely David) but eventually decided not to, since this story just won't have room for a budding romance. It's mostly just going to be Billy and Tommy for a good portion of it so a pairing getting together just wouldn't work ;( But maybe in the sequel...
> 
> Another thanks to @SapphiraBlue for being my beta as usual, and thanks to everyone who leaves kudos and comments! They all make me happy <3

Tommy thought he was screaming, but for some reason his mouth wasn't open. He could feel his fight or flight instincts kicking into overdrive, but his feet couldn't move. The mirror image in front of him didn't seem to have either of the same issues though.

 

"This is it, this has got to be it, I can't believe it! I knew something was going to happen today, but I didn't think I'd find my _twin_! We have to be twins, just look at us!" The brown haired boy grabbed Tommy and turned him towards one of the mirrors. Standing shoulder to shoulder they really looked...the exact same. Ew.

 

"This is the worst birthday ever," Tommy suddenly blurted, feeling a sense of unease settle in his stomach. Was this the horrible thing that was supposed to happen today? Why did finding his supposed brother feel so bad?

 

The brunette just smiled wider, "It's my birthday too, we really are twins!" He exclaimed, pulling a phone out of his pocket to send someone a message.

 

"Oh my god,"

 

"Are you adopted? I'm adopted, so it makes sense if you are too, we must have gotten separated at birth!"

 

"Oh my god."

 

"I have to tell everybody before tonight, Teddy's never going to believe me, this is nuts. We should put your name on the cake, what's your name? I'm William but I usually just go by Billy so-"

 

"I have to go," Tommy zipped out of the dressing room so fast he was surprised there weren't skid marks left on the floor. He ripped his dumb nametag off and threw it onto the counter in front of Bettie-Lou-Ann or whatever her name was. He was _so_ not working here.

 

He could hear the other boy, Billy, call for him to wait by the time he reached the street. As much as he wanted to speed back home, something inside Tommy told him to wait. Maybe he should at least hear the other boy out, or at least make sure he wasn't some stalker. If David found out a stalker had been lurking around their apartment he'd lose it.

 

 _You could have a family again,_ a little voice in the back of his head whispered.

 

 _Shut up,_ Tommy hissed back.

 

Billy emerged from the store a few moments later, dragging a confused blonde girl behind him and dashing over to Tommy. He looked concerned, which only pushed Tommy closer to the edge. A random stranger was _concerned_ about him. That was so not allowed.

 

"I'm sorry if I freaked you out back there, but we _have_ to talk about this," Billy said, looking a little apologetic, "This is my friend Cassie, she can be a buffer for us or something. The three of us can go get some food and see what we know."

 

"Oh wow," Cassie, said, looking back and forth between the two males, "You two could be twins!"

 

"That's kind of the problem," Tommy muttered, "Look, I'm sure you're a nice guy and all, but I'm not really interested in the whole 'long-lost brother' thing. I don't do family bonding, and I don't go out to eat with strangers so…"

 

"Even if that stranger is paying?"

 

“.... You’ve got my attention."

 

"Back at my house there's tons of food for the party tonight, nobody will mind if we steal some to eat a little early."

 

"Billy, you're not supposed to go back yet!" Cassie protested, "This is, like, my one job for the day!"

 

"Cassie, I think finding my _twin brother_ is a little bit more important than a surprise party,"

 

"Do I get a say in any of this?" Tommy asked, interrupting the little argument, "Maybe I don't want to go to the house of a guy I barely know and meet his parents!"

 

"I bet twins have common taste buds. They've got pigs in a blanket there," Cassie said hopefully.

 

"Great, so my name's Thomas, but you can just call me Tommy."

 

On the rooftop of a nearby building, America and Jonas watched the three teenagers converse as they headed back to where Billy had parked his car. The two of them had been waiting eighteen years for this moment; hopefully it didn't blow back up in their faces.

 

"The country knows now," Jonas said, looking down at a glowing pendant tied around his wrist, "There's no going back."

 

"There wouldn't be anywhere to go back to anyway."

 

\--

 

The sun and the moon etchings in the wall glowed brightly as queen Wanda watched from where she stood in front of the throne. The two smaller chairs next to her and her former husband's larger ones looking like a promise once more, instead of an ugly reminder. She had thought her boys would never get the chance to sit on the throne where they belonged, cruelly taken from her shortly after their birth, but now... she felt a small flicker of hope in her heart. William and Thomas were still alive.

 

"Is something the matter, dear?" A masked man inquired, being escorted into the throne room by two guards, "I heard you called for me."

 

"Oh, Victor, just look for yourself," Wanda beamed, gesturing to the wall behind their seats. The light had begun to fade away, but the markings still held a shimmering quality that they had lacked before, "The twins must still be alive!"

 

The mask on Victor's face didn't betray any emotion as he watched the runes glow. He laid on gentle hand on the queen's shoulder, "Now Wanda, you know what happened on that horrid night. The twins were taken by the Darkness along with their father-"

 

"They are still alive, Victor! I can feel it, in my soul."

 

Victor seemed to hesitate for a moment before relenting, "I pray that you are right, my queen. We must do everything in our power to bring the boys back to us, of course. Shall I call your brother and sister home?"

 

It had been years since she had seen Pietro and Lorna. They were both on the front lines fighting against the Darkness, but if her feelings were correct then they wouldn't be needed out there much longer. Thomas and William would be able to banish the Darkness from their country forever, and Wanda needed her siblings’ support anyway.

 

"Please do, my love. I feel as if I'm too weak to do anything by myself these days," Wanda complained, finally flopping ungracefully onto the seat in front of her. A sphere of red light radiated from her hands and shot into the floor, spider webbing its way across the marble surface before fading out.

 

"Your magic is what protects this country, Wanda. You are _anything_ but weak."

 

\--

 

"I wonder if you were almost Thomas and he was almost William," Cassie was saying to Billy as the trio walked through the parking lot, "That'd be so weird, right?"

 

"I mean, if we had those names from birth and grew up with them it wouldn't seem weird at all, I'd just be Thomas," Billy said

 

"Yeah, but it's weird thinking about it now. Thomas Kaplan? It doesn't sound right,"

 

"Can we stop saying my full name every three seconds?" Tommy complained, "I feel like I'm in trouble or something,"

 

As they finally reached Billy's car and climbed in, Tommy couldn't help but feel a little envious. Billy just _had_ a car, like it was no big deal. His parents probably gave it to him for his sixteenth birthday; it was an expected gift, after all. Tommy never got a car, or a not-so-secret surprise party with tons of food and lots of friends. _Billy_ did, though. Did Billy's parents know he had a twin, and that they only adopted one? Did they just not want the weird kid with white hair? Had he been robbed of a better life?

 

No, that's not fair to say. His mom tried her hardest; Tommy knew that. It wasn't her fault that she couldn't find a decent man that loved her, or a job that paid enough; she always tried. The Alleyne family had always been good to him too, even if they didn't have a lot to offer. He's glad he met David, and being a Kaplan means he might not have.

 

His expression must have been pretty sour as they buckled up. Cassie had insisted that Tommy rode shotgun since it's his birthday, which meant Billy could see his scrunched up features once he opened the door to his own side.

 

"Everything okay?" Billy asked tentatively as he slid into the driver's seat, "Your parents...told you that you were adopted, right? I hope I'm not dropping some crazy double bombshell on you or anything."

 

"Parent," Tommy corrected.

 

"Huh?"

 

"I only ever had one parent, my mom."

 

"Oh..."

 

"You want to call her real quick?" Cassie asked, breaking the silence before any sort of awkwardness could set in, "I have a phone if you need to borrow one."

 

"I have a phone," Tommy snapped back at her, god did he really look that poor? Maybe this was a big mistake, "I can't call her anyway she's..... gone."

 

There was the awkward silence everyone had been dreading, settling over the passengers like a disgusting wool blanket. Tommy was about to just open the door and leave when he heard Billy turn in his seat.

 

"I'm sorry," Billy said, reaching out to place a hand over Tommy's like he actually fucking cared, like it was _his_ fault or something, ugh.

 

Except something happened before Tommy could get mad again, a white flash blinded them for a moment when their hands touched and the car went _nuts_. Cassie yelped in the back seat as the car alarm blared and the windshield wipers frantically wiped away at nothing. The car windows began to roll down, only to change their mind halfway and go back up before starting back down again. People passing by stopped to stare at the fiasco, and Billy quickly tore his hand away to try and fix his car.

 

Tommy looked down at his hand while Cassie smacked the back of Billy's seat telling him to 'turn it off already!'

 

Did _they_ just do that?

 

By the time Billy had gotten his car under control and begun the drive back to his house, the incident had just been written off as a freak accident. Except Tommy had a feeling no one actually believed that if the glances Billy kept sending him were any indication. The car ride wasn't exceedingly awkward, with Cassie leaning so far onto the front console that she kept the twins effectively separated. She kept the conversation going and they slowly learned more about each other.

 

Billy's favorite color was red; Tommy's was green. Billy liked outer space and aliens; Tommy liked gemstones and fossils. They both liked cream of wheat for some reason, which disgusted Cassie.

 

As they pulled into Billy's driveway, Tommy was only a little bitter at the fact that his counterpart lived in a modest two story home. At least it wasn't some crazy mansion, he wasn't sure he could've handled that. Cassie quickly made her way inside to make sure Billy didn't see anything that was supposed to be a real surprise, while the two boys lingered on the front steps.

 

"Happy birthday, by the way," Tommy said, leaning back against the railing.

 

"Happy birthday to you, too," Billy responded with a snicker. He was already enjoying having a brother. It wasn't much longer before a different girl ripped the door open, startling the two boys.

 

"What is _so_ important that you had to come back this ear- Oh," She stopped abruptly once she noticed Tommy standing there looking like a deer in the headlights. At least he was important enough to justify this little trip, apparently.

 

Billy took over, gently pushing his way inside the house, "Kate, this is Tommy, my maybe-probably twin. Tommy, this is my friend Kate, she's great when she's not mad at me."

 

"Uh, hi," Tommy said quietly, slipping past Kate to follow Billy inside. He nearly jumped out of his skin when Billy called for his parents suddenly, looking around the room for them.

 

Kate seemed to recover from her initial shock, shutting the door back behind her. "They're not here, they ran to the store. Teddy’s still out back, I think Cassie went to talk to him," she informed Billy, looking Tommy over with a skeptical eye. Hey, he didn't really want to be here either, lady.

 

Billy _tsk_ ed and put his hands on his hips for a moment before turning back around to face the two others, "We'll start somewhere else then. Kate, can you put something out that we're allowed to eat early? Tommy, follow me, we're getting some photo albums." Tommy reluctantly let himself be dragged upstairs while Kate stormed back off into the kitchen, complaining about being treated like a maid.

 

Billy released his hold on Tommy's wrist once they reached the top of the stairs, and Tommy watched as the other boy went into what he could only assume was Billy's bedroom and pulled a box out from under the bed. He rifled through it for a few moments before shoving it back under and pulling out a new one.

 

"So, about what happened in the car..." Tommy started, unable to just sit and watch quietly. He needed to know that he wasn't the only one who noticed the light. Billy paused in his search, and rubbed the back of his neck.

 

"Yeah, sorry, that was... probably my fault," He sighed dejectedly, looking down at the floor, "I, uh... I kinda have powers, believe it or not."

 

Tommy's eyes widened a fraction at the new information. He should've suspected as much if they really are twins, but to actually hear it was a little reassuring. "I kinda have powers too," he said with a shrug, stuffing his hands into his pockets in order to occupy them.

 

Billy's head snapped up at the admittance, offering Tommy a shy smile, "We really must be twins then, huh? What can you do?"

 

Tommy looked back out into the hallway to make sure no one was coming before zipping to the other side of the room in the blink of an eye, "I've been told I'm pretty fast, how about you?"

 

Undeterred by Tommy's cocky attitude, Billy stood up lifted a hand towards his desk against the wall. After a few moments of concentrating his hand began to glow with a blue light, and the mess of pencils on top of the desk began to float shakily into the air. It was only a few moments before the glowing ceased, and the pencils clattered nosily back down onto the wood.

 

"I can't do too much with it, but I think it's pretty neat," Billy told him, and Tommy smiled, because maybe this wasn't going to be an awful day and his twin was actually kind of cool.

 

Tommy's stomach growling interrupted their conversation; looks like he was hungrier than he thought. "Pretty sure I was promised food for coming here, man."

 

Billy walked over to the slimmer door next to his bed, "Hang on, let me just check my closet for these albums real quick and then we can-" Tommy looked over to see what caused Billy to stop talking, but the other boy was just looking inside his closet with an incredibly confused expression. Tommy made his way over to the other to see what he was looking at and- oh.

 

Inside wasn't a closet at all, it wasn't even a room! It looked like some sort of courtyard, with stone tiles half covered by dirt, and a large castle looming in the near distance. The sky didn't even look the same, it had an almost red tint to it, but there's no way the sun was setting this early.

 

"So, uh, I'm going with that's new?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow can you tell who the bad guy is going to be. The bad man. The real evil boy. I'm sure most of you have no clue, but don't worry we'll get there eventually. 
> 
> You can follow me at crownedprincestark.tumblr.com for more updates on my fics or just to see more comic content in general because that's all I seem to have on there now a days


End file.
